LeafxCrow - What if Leafpool was a warrior?
This is an alternate ending fanfiction. What if Leafpool was a warrior instead of a medicine cat?? Note: The Allegiances don't have cat descriptions because they're all canon characters, the WindClan allegiances are incomplete, and the RiverClan and ShadowClan allegiances only have leader, deputy, and medicine cat(s) because they do not play a large role in this fanfiction. Another note: Cinderpelt did NOT die in the badger attack. Also, please ignore the weird things with the timeline. It's just more convenient for the story this way, sorry! Allegiances= ThunderClan Leader: Firestar Deputy: Brambleclaw Medicine Cat: Cinderpelt Warriors: Dustpelt Sandstorm Brackenfur (apprentice: Whitepaw) Thornclaw Brightheart Ashfur (apprentice: Birchpaw) Rainwhisker Squirrelflight Leafpool Spiderleg Queens: Ferncloud Sorreltail (nursing Brackenfur's kits, Honeykit, Cinderkit, Poppykit, and Molekit) Daisy Kits:'''Both of these kits just RANDOMLY POPPED OUT OF NOWHERE to be convenient! Iriskit Newtkit '''Elders: Longtail Goldenflower Mousefur WindClan Leader: Onestar Deputy: Ashfoot Medicine Cat: Barkface Warriors: Tornear Webfoot Crowfeather Owlwhisker Nightcloud Weaselfur Queens: Whitetail Elders: Rushtail Morningflower RiverClan Leader: Leopardstar Deputy: Mistyfoot Medicine Cat: Mothwing (apprentice: Willowpaw) ShadowClan Leader: Blackstar Deputy: Russetfur Medicine Cat: Littlecloud|-|Prologue= Yes, Leafpool is a warrior now "Leafpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?" The tabby apprentice's voice never wavered as she responded, "I do." "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name," Firestar declared. "From this moment on you will be known as Leafpool. StarClan honors your courage and faith. Turning his head to look down on both of his daughters, he said, "We welcome you both as new warriors of ThunderClan." "Leafpool! Squirrelflight! Leafpool! Squirrelflight!" the Clan cheered. Leafpool stood, slightly embarrassed, beside her sister, who was welcoming the cheers, but not arrogantly. Nothing will ever take me from my Clan, Leafpool decided. I ''will ''be a loyal ThunderClan warrior.|-|Chapters 1-3= Chapter 1 - Leafpool Leafpool slipped silently up the cliff and out of camp, taking care not to let Dustpelt, who was on guard duty, see her. It had been too long to put off telling Crowfeather any longer — every cat would know soon, even if she was silent. Crowfeather was at the usual spot by the stream. "Leafpool!" he whispered when he saw her. "You came!" "Of course," Leafpool meowed. "I have something very important to tell you, but it can't be done tonight. There isn't enough time." "I will always have time for you, Leafpool," Crowfeather breathed. "There literally is not enough time," Leafpool pointed out. "I need you to be sleeping tomorrow night, as deeply as you can." "But tomorrow night's the Gathering!" Crowfeather said. "Well, you'll just have to convince Onestar you can't go," Leafpool meowed decisively. "I will come to you. You don't need to worry about anything else." "I trust you," Crowfeather whispered. "I need to go." There was regret in the tabby's mew as she checked the color of the sky. "It's almost sunrise and I'll surely be expected on the dawn patrol. Did you hide your scent?" "Yes," Crowfeather replied. "As well as I always do." "Thank you," Leafpool said, and as she turned to leave she cast a glance over her shoulder. Crowfeather was still standing there, watching her go. She waved her tail in farewell and disappeared into the undergrowth. ---- The next night, Leafpool told Firestar that she was feeling tired and didn't think she wanted to go to the Gathering. Firestar respected his daughter's wishes and let her stay at camp. After the Gathering patrol left, Leafpool retired to her nest early. Not long after, Squirrelflight entered the warriors' den — she hadn't wanted to go to the moonlight meeting unless her sister had. Oh, please don't try to talk to me, Leafpool thought. She closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep. "Leafpool?" Squirrelflight asked. "Are you awake?" She gave no response. Squirrelflight sighed and curled up in her own nest, beside Leafpool's. "Might as well go to sleep too," she murmured. Leafpool felt guilty for deceiving her sister, but guilt soon turned into tiredness and feigned sleep quickly turned into real sleep. Chapter 2 - Crowfeather "I really don't feel all that well, Onestar," Crowfeather meowed. "Maybe I should stay here." "Nonsense. It'll be one of our first Gatherings at the island. You didn't come to the last one either!" "I'm fine staying here," Crowfeather insisted. Ashfoot, the deputy of WindClan and Crowfeather's mother, purred. "Onestar, you know you can't convince him of anything when he's like this." Crowfeather shot her a mock glare. "Exactly what do you mean by that?" he growled. Onestar sighed. "Fine, Crowfeather, you can stay here." Crowfeather heaved a mental sigh of relief. "Thank you, Onestar," he meowed sincerely. Onestar flicked his tail. "I still can't see why you want to stay..." He turned and headed toward the entrance to camp. "WindClan is departing!" he yowled. Most of the selected warriors bounded out of camp behind him, while a few apprentices and young warriors hurried to catch up. Crowfeather padded to his nest. Finally. I can meet Leafpool. As soon as his head touched the ground, he fell fast asleep. ---- His dreams were filled with weird gray mist and smoke. For a long time Crowfeather's mind felt blank and sleepy, but finally he spotted a tabby pelt amid the clouds and fog. "Leafpool!" he gasped. "Crowfeather," she breathed. "Let's go somewhere else." In one heartbeat, the scene changed to a sunny meadow filled with flowers and prey-scent. Crowfeather longed to hunt, but he knew whatever Leafpool had to say was more important. "I need to tell you something," the ThunderClan warrior meowed. "Actually, I need to tell you a story..." Chapter 3 Once there was a ThunderClan warrior. A she-cat, daughter of the Clan leader. At her warrior ceremony she swore to be always loyal to her Clan, especially her father, her mother, and her sister, all in ThunderClan. And she was. Until she fell in love with a WindClan warrior. The she-cat tried to keep him a secret for as long as possible, but eventually she was discovered meeting with him by the medicine cat of the Clan. The medicine cat tried to stop her from meeting the tom, but she did not. A StarClan medicine cat told the she-cat to follow her heart, and the lovers decided to run away. For a few days they were happy, safe beyond WindClan territory. But when a friendly badger named Midnight came to tell them that their Clans were going to be attacked by badgers, they had to go back and help their Clans— and break their ties forever. The she-cat thought it was all over and would never be a concern again. But then something happened— something that changed everything. The she-cat thought she was getting old, or even eating too much. But that couldn't be, because it was leaf-bare and prey was scarce in ThunderClan already. While preoccupied with this thought, she passed the nursery and saw another queen's newborn kits— and then she realized what was happening. Kits. Kits with a warrior from another Clan. It ''wasn't ''all over after all. So she dreamed and asked questions of StarClan, the Clan that she seemed to have a powerful connection to, even as a warrior. StarClan granted her permission to walk in her beloved's dreams for just one night— one night to explain everything to him. And here she is, telling the tom everything that has happened and everything that will happen, and everything they must do for their kits.|-|Chapters 4-6= Chapter 4 - Leafpool Leafpool finished her story and looked up at Crowfeather. "Now you see," she whispered, "how important it was for me to come here tonight." The dark gray tom nodded slowly. "Yes, I see. But Leafpool, our kits will not lead a fair life as half-Clan cats. We cannot curse them to that life." "Then I will raise them in ThunderClan." Leafpool knew as she was speaking that he would never agree. "I could not bear watching my kits grow up in a different Clan, seeing them teased and ridiculed for having no father. Or having to attack them in battle one day. I can't do it, Leafpool." "Then one of us must switch Clans!" Leafpool didn't know how they could do it. It seemed impossible, to raise kits without giving away their secret. "I think I have a plan." Crowfeather spoke softly, and he was looking past Leafpool, over her shoulder. "I can give it up, my Clan, I think, for you." "For me?" Leafpool's voice came out even quieter than Crowfeather's. "You would sacrifice everything for me?" "I would sacrifice anything for you," Crowfeather whispered. "Even my life." "Your life?" "Even my life." Chapter 5 - Crowfeather Crowfeather's heart was heavy as he padded into one of the few tree-groves on WindClan's territory, searching for fox scent. A patrol had chased it off the territory only a few sunrises before, so it couldn't have gone far. He quickly found the place where the patrol had battled it; there was fox and blood scent covering the trees. Opening his mouth wide to scent the air, he followed the trail. The scent got stronger as he traveled out of Clan territory, and it wasn't long before the smell was so powerful he knew the fox was close by. Quickly, he unsheathed a claw and ripped the delicate skin on one of his pads, ignoring the pain. Knowing the risk he was taking, he pounded loudly through the trees, yowling as loud as he dared without it carrying back to WindClan's territory. The fox emerged from the bushes and charged at Crowfeather. Screeching, he turned tail and used all his speed to race back into Clan territory and into the place the fox had been battled. He made sure that his scent got everywhere as well as the blood still dripping out of his pad. The few times the fox caught up to Crowfeather, he made sure to dodge just enough to let the fox rip out clumps of fur but not actually wound him— he'd done enough damage to himself already. Finally Crowfeather rolled away from the fox, back toward the border, and ran the rest of the way out of the territory. The fox followed him, growling, and Crowfeather placed a few slashes across the fox's nose and ears. It was a young fox, and already tired from him leading it all over the place. It didn't take long for it to admit defeat. Crowfeather found a clump of heather to roll in to disguise his scent. He also washed his pad and snagged a wad of cobwebs from a nearby tree trunk to stop the bleeding— this was a trick he'd learned from Barkface. A wad of cobwebs was one of a medicine cat's most basic tools. Now he just had to wait. And roll in some more ferns. He did the latter, and then settled down to do the former. Chapter 6 Leafpool Leafpool trudged along the ShadowClan border, absentmindedly marking it as her patrol proceeded away from the lake. Her sister Squirrelflight bounded ahead, chattering away with Brambleclaw, but she couldn't concentrate because of what Crowfeather had told her the night before. Is he really going to give up everything— his family, his friends, his Clan— for me and our kits? She felt sick because of what he was losing. Your leader and your deputy and ''everyone ''is going to think you're dead. Even your own mother. Wait, isn't his mother the deputy? Leafpool shook out her fur. She wasn't supposed to be worrying about WindClan's personal affairs, but here she was, wondering how the leader of the moor-loving Clan across the border would react when one of his warriors "died" from a fox attack. Oh, Crowfeather, are you really doing this? Crowfeather Crowfeather watched, heart dropping deeper and deeper in his stomach, as a hunting patrol consisting of Ashfoot, Tornear, Owlwhisker, and Weaselfur approached the trees where he'd laid the trail. Oh, StarClan, why did it have to be my mother? He could see Ashfoot's light gray pelt charging into the trees after a rabbit. Crowfeather lost sight of both of them when they entered the grove, but he could hear an audible gasp when she discovered the trail and see the rabbit as it escaped the trees. Owlwhisker dashed to cut it off, and succeeded, but Crowfeather only had eyes for the trees. Weaselfur approached the trees and timidly entered. Crowfeather could hear all of their conversation from his hiding spot. "Ashfoot?" His mother was silent. Grief struck Crowfeather's heart and he almost gave himself away, but then he told himself, This is for Leafpool and our kits. I'm doing it for them. "A—Ashfoot?" Weaselfur called. In a strained voice, the deputy of WindClan whispered, "Crowfeather." Weaselfur padded further into the trees and gasped. "Oh—oh. Er— Tornear? Owlwhisker?" "What is it?" Tornear asked, following Weaselfur into the grove. "Oh. Oh, Ashfoot, I'm sorry." Owlwhisker, carrying his rabbit, headed toward the trees. "Did you see what I cau— whoa." Silence from the grove. "He's dead," Ashfoot whispered. "My son is dead, and I wasn't here to help him. He's dead." "You don't know that," Tornear said, but Crowfeather could tell he didn't believe what he was saying. He had seen enough. He snuck backwards out of his hiding spot and turned to leave.|-|Chapters 7-9= Chapter 7 - Leafpool As soon as she was sure Squirrelflight was asleep, Leafpool cautiously rose from her nest and snuck out of camp again. She climbed — rather clumsily, because of her large belly — out the secret entrance to camp and set off to meet Crowfeather. If his plan had gone well, he would be waiting by the border, north of the abandoned Twoleg nest. Leafpool was almost hoping it hadn't. She still couldn't imagine how Crowfeather and his Clan would feel about the results (having his Clan think he was dead and thinking Crowfeather was dead, respectively). And, of course, what Crowfeather would have to do now that he was, well, presumed dead but very much alive. But her almost-hopes were dashed when she spotted a dark gray pelt lurking by the Twoleg nest. "Crowfeather?" she whispered as she came closer. "Is that you?" "It's me!" Leafpool heard Crowfeather's familiar meow. Leafpool crept over to join him. "Did the plan work?" she asked, knowing the answer. Crowfeather knew that she knew it, too, but he answered anyway. "Yes. All of WindClan thinks I'm dead." Leafpool stroked his side with her tail. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "It's okay," Crowfeather responded. "It was to be with you. I would do anything to be with you." "But now we have to convince Firestar of two things: that you're not Crowfeather, and that you should be allowed into the Clan. You'll have to stay out here for a while," Leafpool fretted, "long enough for the Clans not to attach the two events and long enough for your appearance and scent to change." "It'll be okay," Crowfeather reassured her. "I can do it. Try not to visit me too often or some cat will catch you, like Cinderpelt did." "I'll be careful," Leafpool promised. She looked up at the sky. "I have to go." "We'll meet here again after the Gathering!" Crowfeather said. "Not right after!" Leafpool purred. "I'll be tired!" "Fine," Crowfeather meowed. He was purring as well. "The night after the Gathering." "Okay," Leafpool agreed. "The night after the Gathering." Chapter 8 - Crowfeather Crowfeather watched Leafpool journey back to her camp. At first she walked slowly, then she sped up, as if she'd realized how important it was to get back in time. As if her Clan was more important than me. Is that right? Should I ''want ''her Clan to be more important? That's the way it's supposed to be, according to the warrior code. But the warrior code doesn't always agree with our hearts. Crowfeather sighed and turned away. He had to find a nest to live in until talk of his "death" had ceased and everyone had forgotten all about him. Leafpool was right — he couldn't risk trying to join ThunderClan too early. It would be too much of a coincidence if Crowfeather disappeared from WindClan right around the time a loner, named Crow or something, popped up in ThunderClan territory, trying to become a warrior in the forest Clan. I can't be called Crow, though — it's too similar to my WindClan name. My WindClan name. It seemed as though he was already considering himself a loner, apart from his Clanmates— former Clanmates— in WindClan territory. Well then, what's my ''loner ''name? He ran through a list of possible names. Midnight? Nope. That's the name of the only badger in the world with connection to StarClan. Can't steal that. Night, Darkness, Blackbird... None of them seemed right. Then he realized— the bird almost identical to the crow in size, color, and nature. The raven. Raven. That's perfect! And so, Crowfeather/Raven trotted off to find a good place to settle down for the night. Chapter 9 - Leafpool Leafpool's heart dropped as she saw that Onestar was the leader standing at the front of the rock. Here it comes. "Cats of all Clans, I have something important to share," Onestar meowed after he had started the Gathering with the customary yowl. "A fox has been chased off our territory, but in the process we lost a warrior — Crowfeather." There was murmuring among the Clans as they remembered him as the WindClan apprentice sent on the journey to find Midnight. A few non-WindClan warriors looked sad, Leafpool noticed; the most depressed looked to be Tawnypelt, Brambleclaw, and Leafpool's sister, Squirrelflight, those who had gone on the journey with him. The rest of the Gathering flashed by Leafpool's ears, and she numbly thought of the time she would meet Crowfeather, every half-moon. Is it fair to every cat if I'm the only one who gets to see him, ever again?|-|Chapters 10-12= Chapter 10 - Raven Raven had found a good spot to stay — a great willow tree with drooping branches that would conceal him. Even better, there were a few bushes around that he could make his nest in, and a hidden spot a little ways away from the tree he could use as a dirtplace. There seemed to be a lot of prey around — even now, he could pick up the scent of at least two or three mice plus a good-sized thrush. Raven set about making a nest for himself out of ferns, bracken, and moss he collected from the forest. When he was satisfied that it was comfortable enough, he decided to hunt. He rounded up two of the mice he'd scented, plus a blackbird — Ha, he thought, inwardly purring. Imagine if I'd decided to become Blackbird. What would StarClan have thought of that? ---- A half-moon later, after the sun had fully set, Raven was waiting as Leafpool came up to the abandoned Twoleg nest. "Come on!" he meowed. "I'll show you where my new home is." Leafpool followed him north, over the ThunderClan border, to the willow tree. "Wow," she breathed. "It's so beautiful." Raven had to agree with her. There was something about the tree in moonlight, something that made him think StarClan had touched the place. "Crowfeather, you've been busy," Leafpool commented, looking toward the small pile of prey he'd created on the other side of the willow-camp from his nest. "My name's not Crowfeather anymore," Raven corrected her. "It's Raven." "Raven." Leafpool spoke it aloud, as if testing how it sounded. "I like that name." "Thank you," Raven responded. "It seemed perfect when I thought of it, and it reminds me of Ravenpaw, one of Firestar's oldest friends, who helped us — I mean, me and Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw, Stormfur, Feathertail, and Tawnypelt... you know, the journeying cats." "Yes," Leafpool sighed, "I remember him. He was so nice when he and Barley let us stay in the cow barn on the Great Journey. I wish my father could see him again — it made him so happy to be among old friends." "Yes." Raven nodded awkwardly. He didn't know much about Firestar's private life, so he was slightly uncomfortable discussing it. Other than his attitude toward his daughters, which Leafpool had sometimes shared with him, back when his name was still Crowfeather. Back when I was still alive. At least in WindClan's knowledge. Chapter 11 Leafpool Many moons later, after a tiring day of training her apprentice, Irispaw,Irispaw is completely made up and so is her brother, Newtpaw. Leafpool relaxed in her nest, thinking happily of the fact that she could meet Raven the next night. Firestar had originally planned to give Irispaw to Whitewing as an apprentice, but Brambleclaw, who was the new deputy even though Graystripe, the old deputy, had returned, had reasoned that it wasn't fair to give Squirrelflight Newtpaw to mentor and not give Leafpool an apprentice. Whitewing had said it was okay with her because she was getting ready to move into the nursery with Birchfall's kits and could take a different apprentice after her own kits were apprenticed. She would have gladly given Irispaw's training to Whitewing to oversee, but the white she-cat and Brambleclaw had insisted that she was ready. And now she had something interesting to tell Raven. The next night, she journeyed up to Raven's home, where he was waiting for her in anticipation. "I've got an apprentice!" she meowed excitedly after he greeted her. "Irispaw. Squirrelflight is mentoring her brother, Newtpaw. We just started training today." "Cool!" Raven meowed. Leafpool reflected that though he was living the life of a loner, he was still interested in Clan affairs, and if he was still in WindClan, he would probably have received an apprentice, just like she had. It's kind of him not to be jealous of me, when we're almost the same age and ready to become mentors. Maybe in ThunderClan he can have an apprentice, if Firestar allows it. In ThunderClan. "Raven," Leafpool meowed slowly, "do you think, just maybe, it's time for you to join ThunderClan?" Raven's eyes found hers, and he took a deep breath. "Just maybe," Raven replied. ---- Is he coming? Leafpool worried. Oh, please let him be coming. She didn't have to wait long. Only a few minutes after she'd thought that, a patrol consisting of Birchfall, Brackenfur, Cloudtail, and Sandstorm burst through the thorn tunnel, followed by a familiar-looking cat. Raven. He looked much different now than he had as Crowfeather, with dirt coating his dark gray fur to make it appear brown and whiskers cut as neatly as possible by Leafpool's teeth to make him less recognizable. His fur was also longer, and less sleek, due to living alone in the woods for so long. Cloudtail hurried to the leader's den to fetch Firestar. The ginger tom exited his den and stopped in front of Raven. "Who are you, and what do you want here?" His tone was strong, but not hostile. I'm glad a patrol brought him in, Leafpool reflected. It would have looked much more suspicious if he'd come to our camp by himself. "My name is Raven," Raven responded. "I'm a loner living north of your territory, and I've seen a little bit of your Clan life here. I was wondering if you'd allow me to join your Clan." Leafpool held her breath with hope, trying to make it look as if she didn't care about this cat at all. No one in ThunderClan can know about my relationship with him... at least until he becomes a full member of ThunderClan. Firestar looked at Raven for a long moment. He finally meowed, "You can stay with us for a quarter moon, during which we can get to know each other and you can become more familiar with Clan life, and I will decide at the end of that time whether I'll allow you to stay." Sandstorm nodded her approval at her mate's wisdom. Other cats, especially Cloudtail and Thornclaw, seemed more unsure, but they accepted their leader's decision. Firestar turned to go back to his den. Raven stood by the entrance to camp, awkwardly glancing around at the other warriors. Leafpool attempted to restrain herself from going to show him the warriors' den. It's got to look like I'm as wary of him as the other cats. To her relief, her mother, Sandstorm, stepped forward. "I'm Sandstorm," she meowed. "Welcome to ThunderClan. I'll show you the place you can sleep." Raven knew who she was, of course, and where the warriors' den was (he was a Clan cat, after all, and had seen ThunderClan's camp before), but he dipped his head and followed her anyway. Leafpool sighed with relief when she realized none of her Clanmates were still looking hostile. Maybe he can fit into ThunderClan after all. Raven "I, Firestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this cat. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn. "Raven, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?" "Yes," Raven responded, and there was no doubting how sincere he was. "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this day on, you will be known as—" "Wait." Raven cut the leader off. "I—I wish to keep my name. Raven." Firestar hesitated a moment, then nodded. "As you wish." Without further ado, he continued on with the ceremony. "StarClan honors your loyalty and your resilience, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." As Raven's Clanmates cheered his name, he thought of his choice during the ceremony. Maybe I should have let Firestar give me a new name— no. I could not have kept the name Ravenfeather without thinking endlessly of my past life, and any other name would make me believe myself disloyal to my memories. The moor will never leave my life. Under the pelt of Raven, I still nurse Crowfeather of WindClan in the back of my heart. Chapter 12 Raven Raven's body stiffened as he heard his mate let out a sharp cry. "Leafpool!" he yowled, heading toward the nursery entrance. "Are you okay?" Brightheart, who had been helping the medicine cat Cinderpelt, stopped him. "She's perfectly fine," she reassured him. "Kittings are always like this." Raven still wanted to go see her, but he restrained himself. Until he heard another shriek. This one was louder. "It's fine!" Brightheart insisted, but Raven could see the glint of worry in her eyes. "What's going on?" Raven meowed. "What's happening?" From the nursery, Raven heard a great sigh of relief. "Everything's fine!" Cinderpelt called from the nursery. Brightheart poked her head in, spoke quickly to the medicine cat, and then withdrew her head again. "It's actually fine," she told Raven. "One of your kits is huge! He must have gotten stuck for a moment, but Cinderpelt took care of it." Raven leaned toward the den again as he heard another gasp of pain. "It's okay, it's okay!" Brightheart calmed him. "That one was born easily. You can go in and see them now." She had to dash out of the way as Raven thrust himself toward the nursery entrance, intent on seeing his mate and kits. Three of them, already suckling at their mother's belly. A black she-kit, a huge golden tom-kit — that must have been the one Brightheart was talking about — and a gray tabby tom-kit. "They're absolutely perfect," Raven breathed. Leafpool, looking tired but happy, looked up at him. "Raven, that one looks exactly like you," she purred, gesturing at the she-kit. "I'll leave you alone now," Cinderpelt meowed. The gray medicine cat limped out of the den. Raven heard her telling cats that three healthy kits had been born, Leafpool was fine, and to stay away from the nursery for the time being as Leafpool and Raven wanted some time together. "She does," Raven said in response to Leafpool's statement. "What about—" Leafpool leaned closer to Raven— "Crowkit for her?" Raven felt a stab of something in his chest. Heartbreak? Fear? Maybe it was just a memory. A memory of that day his mother had found blood and fur and a distinct scent of fox in a grove of trees. "Yes," he whispered hoarsely. "Crowkit." Leafpool Crowkit, Lionkit, Jaykit, Foxkit, and Icekit were all playing outside the nursery, with Leafpool watching fondly as her three kits tussled with Ferncloud's. Daisy's smaller kits looked on as Jaykit emerged on top, triumphant. "Jaykit's eyes don't prevent him from winning," Raven observed of their smaller kit. Jaykit's blue eyes were blind, and he would never see as his brother and sister could. But sometimes Leafpool suspected him of being able to see other things. Thoughts, dreams, memories. "One day you will be Jayfeather," Leafpool whispered, soft enough that no cat could hear it, even Raven. "Like your father once was."|-|Chapter 13= Chapter 13 - Jayfeather "Jaypaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?" "I do." Just like his father at his warrior ceremony, no cat at the Moonpool could doubt how much Jaypaw meant those words. "Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Jaypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Jayfeather. StarClan honors your skill and your thirst for knowledge, and we welcome you as a full medicine cat of ThunderClan." "Jayfeather! Jayfeather!" the medicine cats cheered as the newly named Jayfeather licked his mentor's shoulder. "I know you know," a voice whispered by Jayfeather's side. Leafpool was standing at the Moonpool, watching as Cinderpelt padded over to the Moonpool to share dreams with StarClan. "Who your father really was. I know how he felt when he had to betray his Clan and become a new cat so he could be with me. If you need to tell Crowwing and Lionblaze I don't care. He was and is a noble warrior in both of his lives." "I know," Jayfeather whispered back. He also knew that none of the other medicine cats could see his mother, standing by the Moonpool. She wasn't really here. She was back in the ThunderClan camp. But he knew that somehow StarClan had given her the power to see him become a medicine cat. Despite being half-Clan. Despite all the rules and laws and codes of warriors and Clans. Despite everything they'd been through, they'd survived. All of them. ---- Later, when Jayfeather was gathering herbs in the forest alone, he thought about everything that had happened since he'd discovered his power. Seeing into the mind of his mother and his father revealed the events of their past, her secrets, his betrayal. Jayfeather wondered if he ever fell in love with a cat from another Clan, would he betray ThunderClan to be with them? Somehow he didn't think so. In some ways he was like his father, in other ways he wasn't. He and Crowwing shared his father's name, and Lionblaze shared his bravery and skill. But he believed that all three of them had inherited their mother's compassion and dedication to their Clan. No cat outside of their family would ever know, except for StarClan, of course, and they could keep everything from going wrong. They could be smarter than cats before them and make sure that everything happened the way it should. They could go on to fulfill the prophecy and protect each of the four Clans against the rising evil of cats before them. Read Omen of the Stars to find out what happens next! (If you haven't already!) Notes Category:Fanfictions Category:Fanfictions (Semi-Canon) Category:Content (Qibli77) Category:Fanfictions (Complete) Category:Fanfictions (Allegiances)